England vs Pakistan, 1st T20I: Mohammed Amir was spotted licking his fingers in the first over of the match in Manchester. The ICC has banned the use of saliva as a temporary measure.
Pakistan fast bowler Mohammed Amir used saliva on cricket ball in the 1st over of the 1st T20 match against England in Manchester on Friday. Returning to his delivery mark at Old Trafford, Amir was spotted by television cameras, licking his fingers.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has banned the use of saliva as part of interim measures for the safe conduct of sport in the wake of the coronavirus epidemic. The saliva rule has been in place since international cricket resumed in England with the Test series against the West Indies.
It was a muscle memory and the umpires were definitely watching the situation. Mohammed Amir, who was not part of the Test squad, played his first competitive match internationally after cricket was restarted following a forced hiatus due to a coronavirus epidemic.
Period of gentleness
The ICC said players will have the tenderness of an early-period adjustment, but bowling teams will be warned and fined 5 runs after the use of saliva.
He just licked his fingers? Is that allowed?! #ENGvPAK pic.twitter.com/cPXBviJIM1
— Mark @ Splash Gallery (@SplashGallery) August 28, 2020
“If a player applies saliva to the ball, the umpires handle the situation with a bit of tenderness during the player’s early adjustment, but subsequent events alert the team,” the ICC said.
“A team can be given up to two warnings per innings but repeatedly using saliva on the ball, the batting team is fined 5. Whenever the ball is applied to the saliva, the umpires are instructed to swatch clean the ball before the restart of the game.”
Players are allowed to use sweat to maintain the shine of the ball. However, Cricket Australia has said it will not allow its players to use sweat from the forehead, neck and face during the upcoming limited-overs series in England.
Cricket dot com said the board had asked its players not to use sweat near the mouth or nose, based on medical advice. This gives players the option of using sweat from the stomach or back.
